1 Peter 5:2 (ASV)

Passage

Tend the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not of constraint, but willingly, according to [the will of] God; nor yet for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

Nearby Context

1 Peter 5:1 The elders among you I exhort, who am a fellow-elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, who am also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

1 Peter 5:2 Tend the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not of constraint, but willingly, according to [the will of] God; nor yet for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;

1 Peter 5:3 neither as lording it over the charge allotted to you, but making yourselves ensamples to the flock.

1 Peter 5:4 And when the chief Shepherd shall be manifested, ye shall receive the crown of glory that fadeth not away.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "will of God", "tend", "flock", "exercising", "oversight", "constraint", "willingly", and "filthy". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "will of God" and "tend", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "The elders among you I exhort who..." into verse 3's "neither as lording it over the charge...", so "will of God" and "tend" belong inside that flow. In 1 Peter context, the local focus is hope in suffering, holy conduct, submission, and grace.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "will of God" and "tend" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.